1. Field
Disclosed are fully human anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) antibodies, fragments thereof and applications thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
The development of antibodies has evolved from mouse antibodies, to chimeric antibodies, to humanized antibodies, and to fully human antibodies. Fully human antibodies are advantageous over other types of antibodies in that immune response in humans can be reduced. Thus, recent research is centered on the development of fully human antibodies.
Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR; alternatively called Erbb1 or HER1) is a 170-kDa, type 1 transmembrane molecule. Its expression is enhanced in many human tumors, including those in head, neck, breast, colon, prostate gland, lung and ovary. The overexpression of EGFR is known to be related with poor clinical prognosis. Further, expression of EGFR is often accompanied by the production of EGFR ligands, particularly tumor growth factor-α (TGF-α) and epidermal growth factor (EGF), by EGFR-expressing tumor cells. This autocrine loop is conjectured to be related to tumorigenesis. Accordingly, growth and survival of tumors can be suppressed by interrupting the interaction between EGFR ligands and EGFR.